Method of and means for making arch supports



Dec. 28, 1948. w sc oL 2,457,737

METHOD OF-AND MEANS FOR MAKING ARCH SUPPORTS Filed June 12, 1944 arch of the foot, a rounded curvate edge DOT-3,

tion 3 in the heel part of the piece, a curvate portion of greater radius as indicated at 4 at the anterior end of the device, and an outwardly bulged or convex arcuate portion 5 for ultimate I or major longidisposition adjacent the inner tudinal arch of the foot.

The plastic piece I preferably includes a plurality of laminations of plastic and fabric. A satisfactory substance, by way of example, is laminations of fabric and cellulose nitrate sheet stock secured together into an integral whole. The fabric may be of the'character of gauze, linen, or equivalently suitable cloth. A satisfactory commercial product may be made with five such laininations, that is, three of the.-cellulose nitrate sheet, and two of the fabric, with the cellulose nitrate sheet, of course, forming each of the outside faces.

With reference more particularly to Figure 1, it will be noted that a relatively wide bevel l is provided entirely around the piece I, while on the opposite side a narrow and more abrupt bevel 8 which is preferably sumcient to provide a smooth edge is made. As will more fully appear later herein, the relatively wide bevel l permits the plastic piece I to be molded into the desired shape and retain a smooth edge portion of desirable thinness.

The plastic piece I is sold or otherwise distributed to chiropodists or other foot specialists in its substantially flat condition. Of course, there will be such pieces or plates for left and right feet. The chiropodist or foot specialist makes a foot correction appliance from such a product after determining the particular shape of appliance needed by an individual customer. From the piece I the chiropodist would make an arch support for disposition within an article of footwear for a left foot.

In so making such an arch support, the chiropodist would first make a plaster cast of the particular foot in question. Such a cast should be a good positive cast free from wrinkles, rough or high spots. or other openings in the cast, they should be closed-with plaster of Paris so that the molding surface is as smooth as feasible. After the cast has been dried, the chiropodist may then make the desired corrections in the cast with a shoemakers rasp, a knife, or some equivalent tool. That is, if the chiropodist does not desire that the resultant arch support intimately fit the foot of the particular patient as the foot then is, he may correct the shaping of the plaster cast to provide additional elevation, pressure, or support, and to such an extent and in such a location as he may deem meet.

It is preferable that the chiropodist don a pair of cotton or buck skin gloves just before the molding of the piece I into an arch support. These gloves should be kept on all during the molding operation, and if gloves are not convenient, a soft towel may be used for smoothing and fitting the heated piece or blank I during If there should be any air bubbles the molding operation. To make the blank or piece I pliable sufficiently for shaping purposes, it should be placed in boiling water approximately five minutes. This step is illustrated in Figure 3, showing the piece I lying in a vessel I ll of any suitable character and containing a liquid I I such as water which may be heated to the boiling point.

After the softening bath, the blank may be removed with a pair of forceps and placed upon 7 a plaster cast I2 for a particular foot. In placing the piece I upon the cast I2, the wide bevel I should be uppermost or facing the worker, with the cast in inverted position as seen in Figures 4 and 5. Thus, the wide bevel 1 will ultimately be disposed on the side of the support opposite the foot or the shoe side of the arch support.

Preferably, one-half of the blank or piece I is molded over the plaster cast at a time. First, the blank may be held to the cast at the heel portion by one hand I3 of the operator and with the thumb or thumb and fingers of the other hand I4 of the operator, the anterior end of the resultant arch support is formed by shaping the piece I intimately against the plaster cast.

Then, the posterior part of the partially shaped blank may be placed in boiling water for approximately fifteen minutes, or the temperature sufficient to soften the blank may be applied in some other suitable manner, and then the blank may a ain be applied to the cast. This time, the forward or anterior end of the blank will be held down by one hand of the operator as indicated in Figure 5, and the longitudinal arch portion of the resultant support as well as the heel may be shaped over the plaster cast with the other hand.

To make a metatarsal elevation in the shaped blank, the, front end of the blank may be heat treated to a depth of about two inches, and then with both thumbs the underside of the blank may be. pressed as shown in Figure 6 to the desired corrective elevation.

After the blank has been molded into the resultant arch support, any finishing or cutting down can be done with a grinder burr or other suitable tool, after which acetone may be applied to make a finished smooth edge.

It will be noted, as illustrated, that the blank iscupped over the plantar region of the plaster cast so that all the way around, with the excep tion of the anterior margin, the marginal portion of the blank is turned upwardly in varying degrees of height. Thus, when the arch support is finished, the foot rests in the support and the support forms substantially a socket for the underside of the foot. Of course, the bulge 5 on the blank going to make up the supporting portion for the major longitudinal arch of the foot will extend above all the other parts of the blank, as seen in Figure 7. In this Figure '7, I have shown a support made in the manner above described, but in the instance of Figure 7, I have illustrated a support for disposition beneath a right foot, as indicative of the fact that arch supports for both feet are made in substantially the same way, and the blanks are initially alike except for left and right characteristics. The forward or anterior edge 4 of the resultant support is, of course, left substantially flat or even slightly downwardly turned so as to insure a good seating cf the support in an article of footwear.

It will be noted that the wide bevel I will be upturned except at the anterior end of the support, and thus the thickness of the upturned margin is reduced to enable the device to be seated more comfortably within an article of footwear. This same bevel across the forward or anterior end of the support provides a non-gouging front rest for the support within a shoe or other article of footwear,

It will be appreciated that while I have illustrated means for and a method of making an arch support, other foot corrective appliances may also be made by means and under the principles of the method involved in this invention.

From the foregoing, it is apparent that I have provided simple means and simply practiced method for making a foot corrective appliance, both the means and method lending themselves to the making of the appliance by a chiropodist or other foot specialist at his own office so that the resultant appliance will properly fit a particular individual foot.

It will be noted that the means and method require the use of only the most simple tools and equipment, and do not require any special equipment of the character that might logically be found only in a manufacturing plant. It will further be noted that the means as well as the practice of the method are economical and the resultant support or corrective appliance is highly durable, as well as comfortable and well fitting both to the individual patient as well as within an article of footwear.

It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. As an article of manufacture, a single piece blank to be shaped into an arch support, said blank comprising a substantially flat thermoplastic piece having an outline contour generally in keeping with that of an arch support, and said blank also having a relatively wide marginal bevel on the outer side thereof and a relatively narrow and more abrupt marginal bevel on the inner side thereof to provide a smooth edge and to facilitate shaping and provide a better fit of the resultant support in an article of footwear.

2. The method of making a foot corrective appliance from a preformed single piece blank of plastic material having a margin with a substantial bevel, including the steps of making a positive cast of a particular foot, heating the 6 blank to soften the same, and shaping the softened blank over the cast with said bevel on the side of said blank away from the cast.

3. I The method of making an arch support from a preformed thermoplastic blank, including the steps of making a cast of desired shape for a particular foot, heating said blank to soften the same, shaping a part of the softened blank intimately over said cast while holding the other:

part of the blank against the cast, reheating the unshaped part of the blank, and then shaping the unshaped portion of the blank over the cast.

4. The method of making an arch support from a preformed thermoplastic blank, including the stepsof making a cast of desired shape for a particular foot, heating said blank to soften the same, shaping a part of the softened blank intimately over said cast while holding the other part of the blank against the cast, reheating the unshaped part of the blank, and then shaping the unshaped portion of the blank over the cast, heating the anterior portion only of the shaped blankyand shaping a metatarsal lift therein.

5. The method of claim 3 further characterized by the steps of initially beveling the margin of the blank and by the shaping of the blank so that said beveled margin is on the side of the blank away from the cast.

6. The method of claim 4 further characterized by initially beveling the margin of the preformed blank so that the edge has a double bevel, one of which bevels is slight and the other substantial, and both of which bevels terminate in a common relatively sharp edge, and in the shaping of the blank to the cast, keeping the substantial bevel on the side of the blank remote from the cast.

WILLIAM M. SCI-IOLL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 865,836 Wedekind Sept. 10, 1907 1,044,171 Guilford Nov. 12, 1912 1,113,380 Stephenson Oct. 13, 1914 1,914,049 Smith June 13, 1933 2,313,870 Golden Mar. 16, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 255,415 Great Britain Mar. 17, 1927 

